Michael reactions, which may also be referred to as conjugate additions, are utilized for polymer synthesis. For example, Michael reactions can provide for step growth and/or chain growth polymerization and have been utilized in the synthesis of linear, graft, hyper-branched, dendritic and network polymers.
A Michael reaction involves the addition of a nucleophile, which may be referred to as a Michael donor, to an electrophile, which may be referred to as a Michael acceptor. Some Michael reactions, e.g., a carbon-Michael reaction, can provide a carbon-carbon bond.
Some polymers formed from a Michael reaction have been employed in applications where it is desirable to have little or no isocyanate-containing compounds. For example, polymeric foams formed from a Michael reaction have been utilized to replace some polyurethane foams that are formed from an isocyanate-terminated compound and an isocyanate-reactive material.